Created By: Logan Masters And Dylan BirchWhat events led to the Constitutional Convention?

Prelude to Liberty:
The period of time in which the people of Britain tried to separate themselves from the King. The Prelude to Liberty occurred in Britain before people traveled to America. Many important documents were drafted during this time. The Magna Carta was drafted and approved in 1215, which put limitations on the King's taxing authority. Two documents that played major roles in the development of the American Constitution were the British Agreement of the People (1647) and the British Declaration of Rights (1689). Both documents were drafted and approved during the Prelude to Liberty.

Creation of the Albany Plan:
The Albany Plan was composed by Benjamin Franklin and introduced at a conference in Great Britain. This was one of the first big steps the colonists took in an attempt to free themselves from Great Britain. The plan gave most power to the states, but provided union of the colonies on topics such as defense and the other common interests. This plan was rejected by the colonies and the English. The colonies argued that the plan gave British control too much power, while Britain argued that they didn't have enough power to control the colonies.

Declaration of Independence:
The Declaration of Independence is one of the most important documents in United States history. It was written by Thomas Jefferson and it declared American independence from Great Britain. When this document was approved it allowed America to form its own style of government, which also led to many problems. Americans had to find a way to create a government that was fair for every state and its people. With all the problems that came with trying to establish a fair government the Constitutional Convention was needed to create some form of government.

Problems with the Articles of Confederation:
The colonists did not want a strong national government because they feared that it would overpower them and they would be in the same situation as they were in Britain. They liked to think of each state as separate from each other. Therefore the government was based on a loose confederation of individual states. This made the states very difficult to control, which led to the approval of the Articles of Confederation. Under the Articles America had a unicameral legislature, each state received 1 vote in elections, a 2/3 majority was needed to pass legislation, and a unanimous vote was needed to amend the Articles. All of these laws lead to great weakness in the Articles. The national government could not regulate taxes on the states. Since they could not regulate tax they had no money to raise an army or regulate trade. With all these problems people became angry and they began to act out in the forms of riots and rebellions.
Shays' Rebellion:
In 1786 a group of farmers lead by Daniel Shays who needed to be paid for their involvement in the Revolutionary War. They were also rebelling against the unfair taxes that the state governments were forcing upon them. The farmers broke into the Springfield arsenal and stole guns and ammunition which they used to intimidate anyone who tried to stop them. The rebels were met and stopped by Federal troops who came from Boston and were led by Revolutionary War General Benjamin Lincoln. When Shays' Rebellion was over 4 men were killed and 20 wounded. This event was the "final straw" for the American people. They knew something had to be done. Shay's Rebellion was the event that forced the delegates to come together and create the American Constitution by means of the Constitutional Convention.

Why didn't the Articles work?

The Articles of Confederation did not give the National government enough power to run the country. After the Revolutionary war, the country was in great debt, but the governments money was almost useless. Most states printed their own money which made the national currency lose value . We were up to $2.5 million in debt and only had $400,000. In order to pay off the war debt, congress needed to tax the people but didn't have the power to do it. A good government has enough power to protect its people and has power to solve the nation's problems. With the Articles of Confederation we didn't have the power to do either. Since the Articles gave congress so little power the states decided to sent delegates to discuss a solution. The delegates were supposed to just improve the Articles, but instead they created a whole new constitution.

Why was a new model necessary

Because the Articles didn't let congress control trade, we started running out of processed goods, because we traded for most of our processed goods. The colonists were fed up with all the problems that the Articles brought on them. People did not feel safe because they did no have a strong Army of Navy. They were worried because their Navy ships were vulnerable to pirate attacks. Since we couldn't trade farmers started a rebellion called Shay's Rebellion. That rebellion led delegates from each state to come together and design American constitution at the Constitutional Convention. Even though colonists didn't want a strong National government, they knew that one was necessary.

Shays Rebellion